Mattel's action figure line Masters of the Universe was selling extremely well, and Filmation had animated a few early adverts to promote the figures. Looking for a way to further increase the success of Masters of the Universe they asked Filmation to go beyond animating mere toy adverts, and create sixty-five episodes of what was to become known as He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.

Mattel wanted a simple cartoon that advertised its action figures and nothing more. What they had not counted on was that these episodes would have writers trying to prove themselves, trying to breakthrough into the animation industry. Filmation was known as being a great place for opportunities, thus a lot of great animation writers started out here, Paul Dini, Larry DiTillio, Bob Forward and J. Michael Straczynski to name a few.

The series had limited animation, thus it relied on its storytelling and animation direction more than anything. The talent at Filmation turned He-Man and the Masters of the Universe from a simple action figure advert into one of the most memorable animated shows ever produced! He-Man and the Masters of the Universe had a total of one hundred and thirty animated episodes, two made-for-TV specials and a spin-off series. (Synopsis courtesy of he-man.org)